Mark Mattson | |
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 Mark Mattson in 2009 | |
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| Institutions | Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine |
Mark P. Mattson is an American neuroscientist who is an adjunct professor of neuroscience at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
Mattson received his B.S. in Zoology from Iowa State University in 1979, his M.S. in Biology at University of North Texas (originally North Texas State University) in 1982, and his Ph.D. in Biology at the University of Iowa in 1986. [1] He was then a postdoctoral fellow at Colorado State University. [2]
Mattson is the former chief of the Laboratory of Neurosciences at the National Institute on Aging Intramural Research Program of the National Institute on Aging. [3]
Mattson has done research on intermittent fasting. [4] [5] The National Institute of Health considers him "one of the world’s top experts on the potential cognitive and physical health benefits of intermittent fasting". [3] [6] He is author of the book The Intermittent Fasting Revolution: The Science of Optimizing Health and Enhancing Performance. [7] Mattson's research has also elucidated roles for the neurotransmitter glutamate in neuroplasticity and Alzheimer's disease. He is the author of the book Sculptor and Destroyer: Tales of Glutamate - the Brain's Most Important Neurotransmitter. [8] He also hosts a podcast called Brain Ponderings, on which he interviews prominent neuroscientists about their life and work. [9]
The 5:2 diet, a form of intermittent fasting, was first documented in a 2011 article co-authored by Michelle Harvie, Mattson, and 14 additional scientists. [10] [11] [12] The 5:2 does not follow a particular food pattern, but instead focuses entirely on calorie content. [13] In other words, two days of the week are devoted to consumption of approximately 500 to 600 calories, or about 25% of regular daily caloric intake, with normal calorie intake during the other five days of the week. The diet was later popularized in the UK and Australia by Michael Mosley though the 2012 BBC documentary Eat, Fast and Live Longer (in which he learned about the 5:2 diet from Mattson who also appeared in the documentary). [11] [14] It also became common in Australia. [15] [16] [17]
Mattson was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science for research revealing the cellular mechanisms involved in neural plasticity — the ability of neurons to adapt during processes like learning or injury — and development of neurodegenerative disorders. He is the recipient of the Alzheimer's Association Zenith Award, the Metropolitan Life Foundation Medical Research Award, and the Santiago Grisolia Chair Prize. He was as the founding editor and editor-in-chief of NeuroMolecular Medicine and Ageing Research Reviews . [3]
On June 3, 2019, the international symposium Pathways towards and away from Brain Health was held to honor him on his retirement from the NIH. [3]
Dieting is the practice of eating food in a regulated way to decrease, maintain, or increase body weight, or to prevent and treat diseases such as diabetes and obesity. As weight loss depends on calorie intake, different kinds of calorie-reduced diets, such as those emphasising particular macronutrients, have been shown to be no more effective than one another. As weight regain is common, diet success is best predicted by long-term adherence. Regardless, the outcome of a diet can vary widely depending on the individual.
A neuron, neurone, or nerve cell is an excitable cell that fires electric signals called action potentials across a neural network in the nervous system. Neurons communicate with other cells via synapses, which are specialized connections that commonly use minute amounts of chemical neurotransmitters to pass the electric signal from the presynaptic neuron to the target cell through the synaptic gap.
A neurotransmitter is a signaling molecule secreted by a neuron to affect another cell across a synapse. The cell receiving the signal, or target cell, may be another neuron, but could also be a gland or muscle cell.
Ketosis is a metabolic state characterized by elevated levels of ketone bodies in the blood or urine. Physiological ketosis is a normal response to low glucose availability, such as low-carbohydrate diets or fasting, that provides an additional energy source for the brain in the form of ketones. In physiological ketosis, ketones in the blood are elevated above baseline levels, but the body's acid–base homeostasis is maintained. This contrasts with ketoacidosis, an uncontrolled production of ketones that occurs in pathologic states and causes a metabolic acidosis, which is a medical emergency. Ketoacidosis is most commonly the result of complete insulin deficiency in type 1 diabetes or late-stage type 2 diabetes. Ketone levels can be measured in blood, urine or breath and are generally between 0.5 and 3.0 millimolar (mM) in physiological ketosis, while ketoacidosis may cause blood concentrations greater than 10 mM.
The N-methyl-D-aspartatereceptor (also known as the NMDA receptor or NMDAR), is a glutamate receptor and predominantly Ca2+ ion channel found in neurons. The NMDA receptor is one of three types of ionotropic glutamate receptors, the other two being AMPA and kainate receptors. Depending on its subunit composition, its ligands are glutamate and glycine (or D-serine). However, the binding of the ligands is typically not sufficient to open the channel as it may be blocked by Mg2+ ions which are only removed when the neuron is sufficiently depolarized. Thus, the channel acts as a "coincidence detector" and only once both of these conditions are met, the channel opens and it allows positively charged ions (cations) to flow through the cell membrane. The NMDA receptor is thought to be very important for controlling synaptic plasticity and mediating learning and memory functions.
Aging of the brain is a process of transformation of the brain in older age, including changes all individuals experience and those of illness. Usually this refers to humans.
Astrocytes, also known collectively as astroglia, are characteristic star-shaped glial cells in the brain and spinal cord. They perform many functions, including biochemical control of endothelial cells that form the blood–brain barrier, provision of nutrients to the nervous tissue, maintenance of extracellular ion balance, regulation of cerebral blood flow, and a role in the repair and scarring process of the brain and spinal cord following infection and traumatic injuries. The proportion of astrocytes in the brain is not well defined; depending on the counting technique used, studies have found that the astrocyte proportion varies by region and ranges from 20% to around 40% of all glia. Another study reports that astrocytes are the most numerous cell type in the brain. Astrocytes are the major source of cholesterol in the central nervous system. Apolipoprotein E transports cholesterol from astrocytes to neurons and other glial cells, regulating cell signaling in the brain. Astrocytes in humans are more than twenty times larger than in rodent brains, and make contact with more than ten times the number of synapses.
In excitotoxicity, nerve cells suffer damage or death when the levels of otherwise necessary and safe neurotransmitters such as glutamate become pathologically high, resulting in excessive stimulation of receptors. For example, when glutamate receptors such as the NMDA receptor or AMPA receptor encounter excessive levels of the excitatory neurotransmitter, glutamate, significant neuronal damage might ensue. Excess glutamate allows high levels of calcium ions (Ca2+) to enter the cell. Ca2+ influx into cells activates a number of enzymes, including phospholipases, endonucleases, and proteases such as calpain. These enzymes go on to damage cell structures such as components of the cytoskeleton, membrane, and DNA. In evolved, complex adaptive systems such as biological life it must be understood that mechanisms are rarely, if ever, simplistically direct. For example, NMDA in subtoxic amounts induces neuronal survival of otherwise toxic levels of glutamate.
Calorie restriction is a dietary regimen that reduces the energy intake from foods and beverages without incurring malnutrition. The possible effect of calorie restriction on body weight management, longevity, and aging-associated diseases has been an active area of research.
Maple syrup urine disease (MSUD) is a rare, inherited metabolic disorder that affects the body’s ability to metabolize amino acids due to a deficiency in the activity of the branched-chain alpha-ketoacid dehydrogenase (BCKAD) complex. It particularly affects the metabolism of amino acids- leucine, isoleucine, and valine. With MSUD, the body is not able to properly break down these amino acids, therefore leading to the amino acids to build up in urine and become toxic. The condition gets its name from the distinctive sweet odor of affected infants' urine and earwax due to the buildup of these amino acids.
Molecular neuroscience is a branch of neuroscience that observes concepts in molecular biology applied to the nervous systems of animals. The scope of this subject covers topics such as molecular neuroanatomy, mechanisms of molecular signaling in the nervous system, the effects of genetics and epigenetics on neuronal development, and the molecular basis for neuroplasticity and neurodegenerative diseases. As with molecular biology, molecular neuroscience is a relatively new field that is considerably dynamic.
Neuroplasticity, also known as neural plasticity or brain plasticity, is the ability of neural networks in the brain to change through growth and reorganization. It is when the brain is rewired to function in some way that differs from how it previously functioned. These changes range from individual neuron pathways making new connections, to systematic adjustments like cortical remapping or neural oscillation. Other forms of neuroplasticity include homologous area adaptation, cross modal reassignment, map expansion, and compensatory masquerade. Examples of neuroplasticity include circuit and network changes that result from learning a new ability, information acquisition, environmental influences, pregnancy, caloric intake, practice/training, and psychological stress.
In neuroscience, homeostatic plasticity refers to the capacity of neurons to regulate their own excitability relative to network activity. The term homeostatic plasticity derives from two opposing concepts: 'homeostatic' and plasticity, thus homeostatic plasticity means "staying the same through change". In the nervous system, neurons must be able to evolve with the development of their constantly changing environment while simultaneously staying the same amidst this change. This stability is important for neurons to maintain their activity and functionality to prevent neurons from carcinogenesis. At the same time, neurons need to have flexibility to adapt to changes and make connections to cope with the ever-changing environment of a developing nervous system.
GABA transporter 1 (GAT1) also known as sodium- and chloride-dependent GABA transporter 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the SLC6A1 gene and belongs to the solute carrier 6 (SLC6) family of transporters. It mediates gamma-aminobutyric acid's translocation from the extracellular to intracellular spaces within brain tissue and the central nervous system as a whole.
Intermittent fasting is any of various meal timing schedules that cycle between voluntary fasting and non-fasting over a given period. Methods of intermittent fasting include alternate-day fasting, periodic fasting, such as the 5:2 diet, and daily time-restricted eating.
Michael Hugh Mosley was a British television and radio journalist, producer, presenter and writer who worked for the BBC from 1985 until his death. He presented television programmes on biology and medicine and regularly appeared on The One Show. Mosley was an advocate of intermittent fasting and low-carbohydrate diets who wrote books promoting the ketogenic diet. He died on the Greek island of Symi on 5 June 2024.
Weight management refers to behaviors, techniques, and physiological processes that contribute to a person's ability to attain and maintain a healthy weight. Most weight management techniques encompass long-term lifestyle strategies that promote healthy eating and daily physical activity. Moreover, weight management involves developing meaningful ways to track weight over time and to identify the ideal body weights for different individuals.
Nutritional neuroscience is the scientific discipline that studies the effects various components of the diet such as minerals, vitamins, protein, carbohydrates, fats, dietary supplements, synthetic hormones, and food additives have on neurochemistry, neurobiology, behavior, and cognition.
In neuroscience, glutamate is the anion of glutamic acid in its role as a neurotransmitter. It is by a wide margin the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the vertebrate nervous system. It is used by every major excitatory function in the vertebrate brain, accounting in total for well over 90% of the synaptic connections in the human brain. It also serves as the primary neurotransmitter for some localized brain regions, such as cerebellum granule cells.
Stephen F. Heinemann (1939–2014) was a professor of neuroscience at the Salk Institute. He was an early researcher in the field of molecular neuroscience, contributing to the current knowledge of how nerves communicate with each other, and the role of neurotransmitters. Stephen Heinemann died August 6, 2014, of kidney failure.
one of the world's top experts on the potential cognitive and physical health benefits of intermittent fasting
This story, which was originally written by Pamela Wilson and published by ABC Health and Wellbeing, has been reviewed by Dr Rosemary Stanton OAM, nutritionist and visiting fellow, School of Medical Sciences, University of NSW, and was updated in 2019. Posted 5 Feb 2020, updated 10 Feb 2020
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